Beverly Schueller

The delight I see on the faces of the Navajo and Zuni children brings me more joy than I could ever express.

— Beverly Schueller

2011 Celebrity Cruise Honoree

Bev has had a deep interest in Native American culture since she was six years old. Over the years, she has collected thousands of boxes of new and gently used clothing and blankets for the most impoverished people of the Navajo and Zuni Nations. The Navajo are the largest federally recognized tribe in the U.S., with more than 300,000 enrolled tribal members. The Navajo Nation constitutes an independent governmental body, which manages the Navajo Indian reservation that is situated in the "Four Corners" area of the U.S.

The Zuni Nation lies in the Zuni River Valley and is located primarily in Western New Mexico. There are nearly 8,000 enrolled tribal members in the Zuni Nation.

Beverly's Ohio home has served as the primary staging area to collect, sort, and box all types of items needed to support the members of the Navajo and Zuni nations. Early on, the Council of Indian Nations was able to furnish the trucks needed to bring deliveries to distribution points, and at that time, an army of volunteer college students would load the boxes for transport more than 1,500 miles away.

Over the years, Beverly saw to it that goods were also provided for several annual Elder Appreciation Day events, as well as seeing to it that truckloads of toys made their way to the reservations for the children's KeshKesh Mish (Christmas celebrations).

Supporting the Navajo and Zuni Nations has been an act of love and compassion for Beverly and her husband George - so much so that the couple has attended each clothing and blanket distribution, and every special tribal event.

Today the Nations can no longer provide trucks to transport the much-needed goods, so Beverly delivers the supplies to a local Community Service Center that provides for the needy.